Free laptop with mobile broadband - Ask Our Expert
If you’re having technical, service or supply problems, or just have a question you want answering, why not write to OurExpert@BroadbandChoices.co.uk
Michael Phillips is product director at BroadbandChoices.co.uk and can help with anything from contractual problems, to giving technical advice or telling you how to speed up those slow movie downloads.
On the subject of free laptops, our expert says…
Hi James,
You are right to be cautious, and when it comes to broadband packages, nothing is free! Although laptops that come with broadband were originally advertised as “free”, most providers do not use this term anymore as it is clear that you are likely pay for the laptop in some other way.
In the guide below I will take you through some of the latest free laptop deals, looking at if and when they might offer good value.
Let’s look at the shortest 5GB package. It costs £35 a month with no set up or connection fees, so over the 18 month contract would cost you £630.
Without the “free” laptop, 3 offers the same level of mobile broadband (5GB with a free modem) for £15 a month. Over an 18 month period, this deal would cost you £270.
So, effectively the laptop on the first deal costs you:
£630 - £270 = £360
The suggested retail price of the laptop is £329, so effectively you are paying £31 extra by taking this deal rather than purchasing the laptop and mobile broadband separately.
Free laptop with regular broadband
AOL’s (www.AOL.co.uk) Wireless Plus package currently comes with a free laptop, as well as download speeds of up to 8Mbps and a high monthly download limit of 40GB.
The package costs £19.99 a month, so once you add the delivery charge of £14.99, the total cost of this 24 month contract is £494.75.
To assess whether this package offers good value, we need to look at the cost of broadband without a free laptop.
TalkTalk (www.TalkTalk.co.uk) offers the same level of broadband (speeds of up to 8Mbps and monthly download limit of 40GB) with its Talk UK Weekend package. This costs £4.99 a month with a one off £29.99 connection fee, which would make the total cost for 24 months £149.75.
A quick sum now lets us work out how much you will be paying for the “free laptop” on the AOL deal.
£494.75 - £149.75 = £345
The laptop itself is worth £279.99, so you are effectively paying £65 extra by taking the “free” laptop deal, rather than purchasing the laptop and broadband separately.
Free PS3 with broadband
The AOL Wireless Plus package is also available with a “free” Sony PlayStation 3.
As the costs are the same as in the example above, you are paying £345 for this PS3.
Play (www.play.com) offer the same PlayStation 3 for £299.99 with free delivery, so you are effectively paying £45 extra by taking the “free” PlayStation 3 offer from AOL rather than purchasing the PS3 and broadband separately.
When is a free laptop deal good value?
As you can see from the examples above, generally you will actually be paying more overall, to get a “free” laptop. In almost every case you would get a better deal by purchasing the laptop (or PS3) separately from your broadband.
We would recommend this, as it also means you do not get tied up in long broadband contracts. Therefore you can make the most of faster and cheaper offers when they become available.
However, if you do not have the cash to fork out for a laptop in one upfront payment, a free laptop deal could provide better value than alternative borrowing options.
Other extras
Most broadband packages come with a router, but many also include added extras such as internet security packages, a static IP address and webspace. Like with the laptop deals, you will usually pay for these extras within your monthly payment.
When choosing a broadband package it is crucial that you weigh up the true value of these extras and work out whether it would actually be cheaper to purchase them separately.
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